A Simpsonville homeowner shot and killed a man in his yard Saturday, only to find out the intruder was his estranged son-in-law.

John Hughes told WYFF News 4’s Ashley Swann that his daughter and son-in-law were in the middle of a contentious divorce. But Hughes said he had no idea that was who he was shooting at Saturday night.

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Hughes says despite a restraining order, Ferrell showed up at the house Saturday night promising no trouble, but he says Ferrell quickly got into a verbal altercation with the family.

According to Hughes, Ferrell left the home. Some time later, Hughes says he heard a strange noise outside. He asked family members to call 911 and went outside to investigate. That's when Hughes says he saw someone trying to enter his home through the kitchen window.

“Everybody that I love was in this house,” Hughes told Swann. “My whole family was in this house. And I did not know what was happening."

Hughes said he told the person to stop and that the police were on their way, but the man did not stop. Hughes says it was dark and he didn't know if the person was armed.

“I said, ‘Stop,' and the movement toward me got faster and I started firing again until the body went down,” Hughes said.

When police arrived moments later Hughes learned that the man lying dead in his yard was his daughter’s estranged husband, 51-year-old Michael Ferrell.

“The last time I saw him was when he left the house and the next time I saw him he was in the yard,” said Hughes.

According to Hughes, Ferrell and his 32-year-old daughter had a troubled relationship that began when his daughter was still underage. He says two children and many police calls later, his daughter was trying to get herself and her kids away.

Despite their history, Hughes says he and his family, especially his daughter, are distraught.

“I killed my son-in-law. That's horrible enough,” Hughes said. “But the fact that I have to somehow tell my grandchildren that I killed their father. That might be more than I can take.

"I wish it hadn't happen and there was something else I could have done," he said.